blue rose won’t bloom

Question

Bought this rose 4 years ago. It bloomed the first year but the last three years it has just gotten tall and leggy and no blooms. I’ve been feeding it two or three times a summer with Mir-Acid. It just will not bloom. It gets plenty of sun and the soil is good. If it doesn’t start blooming, I’m going to dig it up and throw it away. What do I do with it?

Answer 1

This sounds like a very typical grafted rosebush problem. The upper desired part of the rosebush dies over winter for some reason. Then the lower and very hardy root stock takes over. The growth is usually tall, leggy and quite vigorous. Sometimes it will bloom in 3 to 4 years but the blooms are deep red or pink, certainly not the rose you desired back when purchased. I dig them out and plant a new rosebush in the same spot using amended bagged garden soil. Prune the old rosebush way down and throw the canes into the yard waste container. Dig out the root ball getting as much of it as you possibly can. Then discard in the trash. Here is an article for you on this subject too: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/flowers/roses/own-root-roses-grafted-roses.htm